The N.C. Utilities Commission has disclosed that it received a subpoena last month from the federal grand jury that is investigating the Feb. 2 coal ash spill at Duke Energy’s Dan River Steam and state enforcement of ash pond regulations.

It is the second state agency to acknowledge receiving a subpoena in the case. The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources last month said it received three subpoenas in the probe.

The commission's subpoena seeks information on ash pond inspections that could go back as far as 20 years. It asks for records the commission has on the last three independent inspections performed at Duke’s 14 current and former coal plants every five years.

The commission had authority over the coal ash disposal activities at Duke plants until 2010, when the General Assembly transferred authority over coal ash to DENR. So it is possible that some of those records could reach back to 1994.

The subpoena also asks for any information documenting site visits at those plants during that same period.

In addition, the subpoena asks for information since 2010, once the commission no longer had authority over the ponds.

No comment

It requests “emails, memoranda, letters, photographs, videos, reports and any other documents ... from 2010 to the present, that refer to seepages and or discharges .. from any coal ash pond that is not specifically authorized.”

The grand jury also wants the same kind of information about any communications the commission has had with Duke concerning four court cases DENR brought against Duke last year over its handling of ash at its 14 coal plant sites.

Sam Watson, general counsel for the commission, would not comment on the subpoena.

It was obtained by the Charlotte Business Journal as a result of a public records request the newspaper made last month.

The released subpoena does not ask for information about any personnel at the commission. Subpoenas sent to DENR requested personnel records of 20 employees and asked whether 18 specific employees had ever exchanged “items of value” with Duke.

Charlotte-based Duke (NYSE:DUK) also received two subpoenas. It has declined to release information about them. The subpoenas warn recipients not to disclose information about them. The two public agencies have released the subpoenas because state law generally requires documents state offices receive in the normal course of business be made available to the public.